Paul George is an NBA veteran who is in his 17th season in the league. It is also his first year with the Boston Celtics, and he is taking his responsibility as being one of Jayson Tatum's key supporting teammates.
George seems to understand that Tatum is the main man in the Celtics' attack, and the newcomer appears to be happy to support Tatum. That is especially the case when Tatum is on the bench in the fourth quarter.
The Celtics improved their record to 5-1 after defeating the Orlando Magic 108-97 on the road Sunday. Tatum had another huge game for Boston as he scored 32 points, handed out 5 assists and made 15 of 17 free throws. Tatum had suffered a cut on the back of his head early in the first quarter and returned to play 34 minutes.
George provided the support the Celtics needed when Tatum was off the court. He scored 17 points, added 6 rebounds and handed out 8 assists.
“I do take those minutes very important,” George explained, per Celtics beat reporter Bobby krivitsky. “He’s doing everything we need of him. He’s playmaking, he’s getting his own shots, he’s creating, he’s defending, rebounding, he’s doing a lot. So, if I can make it easy for him, and he doesn’t have to press when he comes back in, ultimately, I’m trying to win those minutes for him.”
Tatum is averaging 27.6 points, 6.4 rebounds and 7.8 assists per game in the early part of the season. George is second on the team in scoring with an average of 21.4 points and 6.0 rebounds per game.